So far I haven’t cared much for this series. This is DC’s big event book for 2008 and the big completion to their “Crisis Trilogy” started with Crisis on Infinite Earths in 1986 and continued with Infinite Crisis in 2006. This one has been a little hard to follow and frankly, a bit boring, but thankfully this issue kicks it up several notches.

I’m not going to go into how overrated I think writer Grant Morrison is. He’s got some fantastic ideas at times but often his storytelling isn’t my cup of tea. This issue is the first thing I’ve liked from him since his days writing Justice League in the Nineties. As far as art goes on this book, J.G. Jones rocks! His visuals always deliver even if the story isn’t really there. Issue 4 here picks up a month after issue 3 when the Anti-Life Equation has been broadcast across the globe by the evil minions of the god-like Darkseid. His soldiers have enslaved much of the world’s population and the superheroes, Green Arrow, The Ray, Hawkgirl, Oracle, etc., are the last bit of resistance. It looks like evil has won. But the heroes have a hail mary pass that will hopefully turn the tide. Since the last 3 issues of this book really left a lot to be desired I have to give credit and say that this issue did entertain me and didn’t leave me scratching my head. Grade: B

IDW Publishing: G.I. Joe #0

IDW Publishing has taken over the comic side of this beloved 80’s franchise and here we are with a zero issue priced at 1 dollar that gives you a taste at where they are headed with the further adventures of G.I. Joe. You get three stories here previewing three Joe titles coming to your comic shop very soon and all three stories center on the popular character of Duke. I’m enthused to see what will be done with this and this issue is definitely worth picking up…the thing is only a buck! That’s great for these recession laden times!! Grade: B+

DC Comics: Superman – New Krypton Special one-shot

The last issue of Action Comics tied up the storyline that had Superman meeting the real Brainiac (not his robotic probes) for the first time and had a final page that was a punch in the gut….the apparent death of Pa Kent. I really thought that he was just injured and we’d see him recovering in the next few issues. Well, he’s gone. This one-shot begins with the funeral of Pa Kent and it is incredibly moving and beautifully rendered by master artist Gary Frank. You feel the pain of loss to Clark and Ma Kent as well as the rage felt towards Brainiac, who had launched a missile at the Kent farm in the final moments of the battle with Superman in Action Comics. Along with the family tragedy, Superman also has the issue of the Kryptonian city of Kandor. The city was a minituarized captive of Brainiac but during the battle was liberated by Superman and placed near the Fortress of Solitude before it expanded to normal size. Now, there are thousands of Kryptonians on Earth and Superman and some military types are wondering how to handle this new world-changing situation. Writers Geoff Johns, James Robinson and Sterling Gates and artists Gary Frank, Pete Woods and Renato Guedes give us a hell of a tale that lays the groundwork for where the Superman mythos is headed for issues to come. Very well done! RIP Johnathan “Pa” Kent. Grade: A+

Cover of the Week: DC Comics: The Family Dynamic #3 ( of 3 )

I know nothing about this comic but this cover caught my eye with it’s beautiful animated style!

Until next time– Peace…

Yep, I’m on vacation this week in sunny Florida and unable to get to my comic book store for my weekly fix. But here are reviews of some nice little gems that you should check out. These are Grade: A worthy!

IDW Publishing: Zombies vs. Robots

You’ve got creepy zombies. You’ve got clunky robots. Two great tastes that go great together! Written by Chris Ryall with unique art by Ashley Wood, this two issue mini-series was a cult hit that smooshed two genres together with great apocalyptic fun. The humans experimented with time travel and sent robots back and forth through time and somewhere along the way picked up some kind of virus that transforms nearly all of the humans into flesh-eating zombies. But there is one human baby left and the robots are intent on continuing their programming directives by protecting the child so eventually it can be cloned to bring humanity back from extinction. Things don’t go well. This is a fun read but Ashley Wood’s art, although it really works for this book, may not be for everyone. If this sounds like your cup of tea then you should check it out. And look for the sequel, Zombies vs. Robots vs. Amazons! I promise, I didn’t make that title up.

Red 5 Comics: Atomic Robo

Fans of Hellboy should pick this up. It has a lot of the same humor and action as that book but with more of a sci-fi feel. Written by Brian Clevinger with art by Scott Wegener, we follow the adventures of Atomic Robo, a robotic American created in 1923 by Nikola Tesla, as he combats all manner of strange and supernatural foes…evil Nazi super-scientists, mummies, giant ants, etcetera, etcetera, etcetera. Originally a 6 issue mini-series, I’m sure this has been or will be collected very soon. The best issue by far is Atomic Robo helping out Nasa by exploring Mars and getting a little payback against something Stephen Hawking (yeah, that one) did to Robo. It’s funny and makes the character even more likeable. Robo is sarcastic but has very good intentions and will throw himself headlong into a fight. This book was a pleasant surprise.

Dark Horse Comics: Hellboy – Odd Jobs and Odder Jobs

First off, there is some art in both of these books but they are prose anthologies…not comics. Now, they both rock! Mike Mignola has allowed some creators such as Greg Rucka, Guillermo del Toro and many others play in his Hellboy universe and we get some really great (and creepy) stories involving the characters of the B.P.R.D. that we know and love. Mignola provides some illustrations here and they are very nice but most of the stories themselves are awesome. It’s cool to use your mind’s eye to flesh out some of the characters and settings in these tales. If you are in the mood for Hellboy and to do a little reading then these anthologies should be right up your alley.

Until next time–Peace…

Comic book adaptations of movies usually suck but IDW Publishing gets it right with the first issue of Beowulf, based on the Old English poem and the upcoming cgi film from director Robert Zemeckis. This is a 4 part mini-series with a new issue coming out weekly through October.

Written by Chris Ryall (from the screenplay by Neil Gaiman and Roger Avary) and stellar art by Gabriel Rodriguez, the story follows the the 6th century warrior Beowulf as he faces the monster Grendel, it’s demonic mother, and a dragon tied into Beowulf’s destiny. This issue introduces you to all those involved and it really does a great job of setting up the story and giving you a pretty good idea about who the main characters are. Like I said, the art is amazing and I’m really glad I picked this up on the urging of my comic shop owner. I know the story but this is still a very special treat. Grade: A+

Wildstorm: Midnighter #12

Written by Keith Giffen with art by Rafael Sandoval, this issue catches up with Midnighter trying to find information on the organization called Anthem, who basically seem to be a group of ultra-conservative superpatriots out to mold America into their ideal image. Right after Midnighter is able to contact his computer guru to crack the case, he gets involved in a battle with a supervillain that causes some major destruction in New York City. As always, the way Midnighter deals with adversaries is thrilling and inventive and this one is great. This is my favorite “non-Big 2″ superhero title out there and I loved this issue! Grade: A- DC Comics: Countdown 30 (and counting…)

DC is getting better with this but the story, as I have said before, pales in comparison to their previous weekly title, 52. But there is a lot of fun in this issue and as a whole you can see that they are getting somewhere…..it’s just taking quite a while. I’ll keep hanging on and there is the promise in all of the teaser adds for this book and DC’s whole line in general that something big is coming. Okay! By the way, isn’t that cover above really cool? Grade: C+

Until next time–Peace….